


Essays, Eyes, and Lies

by Beth Harker (Beth_Harker)



Category: Newsies (1992)
Genre: Canon Era, M/M, Post canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-27
Updated: 2014-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 13:23:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17183801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beth_Harker/pseuds/Beth%20Harker
Summary: David has a headache, Jack speaks without thinking, and both have their work cut out for them when it comes to figuring out where they stand, as far as relationships go.





	Essays, Eyes, and Lies

David’s house was different, now that he’d gone back to school. Jack was never sure if he was supposed to be there anymore. Like tonight, David was sitting at his desk, surrounded by books that he wasn’t even reading. He said he had a headache. His face was in his hands like he was really in pain, and Jack didn’t know what to do. It wasn’t like he’d shown up uninvited. David had run into him in the morning and demanded to know why he’d all but stopped coming over.

Jack passed some time playing marbles and talking to Les. Sarah invited him onto the roof and gave him a muffin she’d made, so he ate that. He offered to help her get the laundry down, but she laughed at him. Jack had brought a newspaper for Mayer, but he wasn’t home yet. His new job kept him late every night. 

By eight o’clock, Jack was really wondering if he oughta leave. He couldn’t get the thought out of his head, that if he didn’t change how this visit was going, every visit he made would be like this, until he just stopped coming altogether. He grabbed a chair from the kitchen, and pulled it to where David was still hunched over. He didn’t look like he’d moved, but a half-written essay had appeared at some point, so Jack guessed he’d been busy. 

“Feelin’ better?” Jack asked. A few weeks ago, he would’ve put his arm around David… if he’d ever seen him crumpled into himself like this, that is. Hell, he’d hugged David plenty of times, and just about every time David had been as healthy and happy as could be. Jack didn’t now, because David’s shirt was too clean and too neatly pressed. 

“Yeah,” David said. “I hate my eyes.” 

“Your eyes?” 

“I always get this thing, where it hurts right behind them. It’s stupid.” 

“You have nice eyes,” Jack countered, without thinking. They really were nice eyes, though. All blue, and prettier than a boy’s eyes ought to be. Jack felt almost like he was blushing, not that he ever did that. He rubbed the back of his neck, and tried to think of something else to say. 

David shifted, leaning to look up at Jack with interest, an expression of sharp and sudden awareness on his face. “What do you like about my eyes?” He asked. He was staring right into Jack’s own now. Forgetting that David was maybe sick, Jack gave him a light shove. 

“What you want me to say, Dave? They’re eyes. Nothing to get poetical about. You’re lucky you got two of ‘em.” 

“Oh,” David brushed his hair out of his face, making it look kinda rumpled in a way that Jack definitely was not noticing. Jack watched as he loosened the tie that he’d taken to wearing every day for his lessons, wrapped tight about his neck like a noose or a collar. He sharpened his pencil carefully, replaced the ink in his pen. 

“I have to write this,” David said, almost apologetic, pointing to his paper. 

“Yeah, I get it. You want me to go, right?” 

“Yes. But… you have to come back tomorrow, if you do,” David said, oddly commanding for somebody who had been ignoring him ever since he’d arrived. Jack thought about touching him, decided not to, took a breath, and nodded. 

“I’ll see you around,” was all he said. He wasn’t about to make a promise, but something told him he’d be back again tomorrow anyway. 

David cemented that idea by springing up out of his chair just as Jack was opening the window, and grabbing onto his sleeve. 

“I’ll be better company tomorrow,” David promised, and something in Jack softened. He’d been expecting David to start lecturing him about always going in and out the fire escape, when there was a perfectly good door just a couple of feet away. 

“Your company’s plenty good,” Jack said. It was true. Sort of. Not like Dave had done anything to be a good host, and yeah, he had ignored Jack, but Jack still liked being around him. He liked being around him so much that if he were a girl, or some boy from the lodge with no future to speak of, Jack might have…

“Liar,” David said. It was jarring. He spoke like it was a joke, but Jack didn’t think that word could ever be light coming from him.

At least in this instance Jack could appreciate it a little bit. It derailed some thoughts that he didn’t really want to be having. 

“Yeah, rub it in why don’t you.” Jack clapped David on the shoulder, and turned quickly, climbing out, and away. It wasn’t like Jack had lied, anyways. He wasn’t sure if he’d even improved the truth. Maybe he’d just been gracious and forgiving, and maybe that had even been a noble thing for him to go and do. It wasn’t like Dave could have wanted Jack to give him grief for not knowing how to treat a houseguest. 

But then again, maybe that hadn’t been it, either. Maybe Jack had just seen what he’d wanted to see, and maybe even right now he was lying to himself, telling himself that he’d had a great night palling around with his friend, when in reality everything had gone strange and awkward, and he didn’t know what to do about it yet.

What would a cowboy do, in this kind of dumb situation? Kiss David tomorrow probably, or else get as far away from him as he could, go west or south and make a life for himself, get a hold of a horse, or a gun, or a girl, and do something sure and certain. Well, Jack would do that soon. He’d do at least one of those things, maybe all of them. He was nearly ready to do all of them at once, and the only part he was really uncertain about was the part that had to do with dragging others into it with him.


End file.
